The 57 Bus shows development through adversity. The book is based on a true story about an agender teen who got lit on fire because they were wearing a skirt. The 57 Bus begins with introducing someone named Sasha. Sasha began to explore different topics about whom they might truly be, whether it was their sexuality or what gender they might identify as. Sasha was surrounded by many supporting figures in their life. Richard was an African American male who was trying to turn his life around. Richard’s goal was to graduate high school. Richard and Sasha both took the same bus home every day, the 57 bus. One day, Sasha fell asleep on the bus while Richard and his friends were screwing around in the back. Richard was dared to light Sasha’s skirt on fire because they looked like a guy wearing a skirt. Richard thought it would cause no harm, so he lit the skirt, then got off the bus right away. He turned around and saw Sasha engulfed in flames. Richard was arrested the day after the crime was committed, and Sasha began a long recovery process. Eventually, Richard signed a plea deal that imprisoned him for a total of seven years. As for Sasha, they began a long recovery challenge starting the day of the attack. They weren’t able to talk to their friends face to face for over 3 months. Sasha went through many struggles while recovering, but not having their relationships affected them the most. Sasha’s family didn’t get the two written letters until after the case was over, but when they read them, their opinion on Richard changed. Eventually, when Richard was released, he and Sasha met up again and Richard was able to formally apologize. The book being written from the perspective of Sasha and Richard allowed me to see their opinions and thinking on certain events. This allowed me to bond with the characters to a greater extent. Once the middle of the story began, the style of the book changed. After Richard lit Sasha on fire, the book’s rhetoric changed to a more objective tone. This objective tone was still very meaningful. The author was stating facts about the event without a bias. This allowed you to form an opinion for yourself. Not only did this allow you to establish your own opinion, but it also allowed you to critically think and piece everything together. Throughout the book, I was mainly thinking about the end result. Although I was concerned about Sasha’s recovery and Richard’s court case, the main idea I was worried about was what would happen between Sasha and Richard. The book was hinting at a unity between the two. It mentioned the letters Richard wrote to Sasha and Sasha’s family multiple times, but it would also talk about Sasha’s opinions on Richard. Not only would it talk about Sasha’s feelings, but it would also mention Sasha’s family’s feelings. Mostly, the feelings consisted of confusion. “Why would he do that to me,” but every so often Sasha’s family would understand what Richard was currently going through. Eventually, all these hints confirmed my thoughts. Sasha and Richard reunited. The fact that Sasha had the courage to meet Richard formally, and Richard had the courage to face the person’s life he changed forever, surprised me. The beginning of the book changed me in a few ways. I got to see the perspective of an agender person's life. This enabled me to be more open to different types of people because I realized that everybody is living in the same world. Everyone might not be suffering the same problems, but we’re all here together. Reading The 57 Bus caused me to view things differently. It taught me to see where other people are coming from, instead of just centering on my point of view. Throughout the whole book, the opinions that Sasha and Richard have on each other resurface commonly. This taught me to think about the people that I have affected. Before the book pointed this out to me, I didn’t realize how my actions might influence other people’s lives. What are the opinions that they might have on me after I’ve done something? This has made me be more conscious about my actions. I think about what will happen before I do something now. This not only allows me to make smarter decisions, but it also causes me to build better relationships because I’m not angering people through my actions. I’ve also changed to be more considerate of others. By Grant Z.
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AuthorSTenth grade students at Decorah High School share how they're reading outside of their own experiences and how it has changed them. Categories
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November 2022
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